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Shown Here:Introduced in House (09/29/2010)

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[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[H.R. 6268 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6268
To establish a wage theft prevention grant program in the Department of
Labor to prevent wage and hour violations and expand and improve
cooperative efforts between enforcement agencies and members of the
community.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 29, 2010
Mr. Hare (for himself, Mr. George Miller of California, and Ms.
Berkley) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a wage theft prevention grant program in the Department of
Labor to prevent wage and hour violations and expand and improve
cooperative efforts between enforcement agencies and members of the
community.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Wage Theft Prevention and Community
Partnership Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Wage and hour violations are a serious and growing
problem for working Americans.
(2) According to a study by the Ford, Joyce, Hayne, and
Russell Sage Foundations, low-wage workers are routinely denied
proper overtime pay and are paid less then the minimum wage,
often resulting up to a 15-percent loss in pay.
(3) Widespread wage and hour violations place ethical
businesses at a competitive disadvantage.
(4) Wage and hour violations hurt local economies. State
and local governments lose vital tax revenues and spending
power when employers do not pay legally required wages and
workers receive less than full pay.
(5) Women are far more likely to suffer minimum wage
violations than men, while minority women suffer such
violations at a rate nearly triple the rate that white women
suffer such violations.
(6) Social service networks are further strained and
poverty increases when low-wage workers receive lower wages
than what is required by law.
(7) The Department of Labor and State departments of labor
could more adequately address wage and hour violations with a
significant partnership with stakeholders in the community.
(8) The Government Accountability Office recommended that
the Department of Labor identify ways to leverage its existing
tools to better address wage and hour violations by improving
services provided through partnerships.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act the following definitions apply:
(1) The term ``eligible partner'' means any of the
following:
(A) A not-for-profit community organization that,
in whole or in part, is dedicated to combating poverty
and preventing abuse of wage and hour laws.
(B) A labor organization as defined in section 2(5)
of the National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 152(5)).
(C) A Joint Labor Management Cooperative Committee
established pursuant to section 205A of the Labor
Management Relations Act, 1947 (29 U.S.C. 175a).
(2) The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Labor.
(3) The term ``wage and hour violations'' refers to
violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act or the Migrant and
Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act, or any regulations
issued under either such Act, or violations of any other law
enforced by the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of
Labor, as the Secretary may determine.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION TO CREATE A WAGE THEFT PREVENTION FUND.
The Secretary shall establish a Wage Theft Prevention Fund, which
shall provide funding for the Wage Theft Prevention and Community
Partnership Grants described in section 5. The Secretary may promulgate
regulations as necessary to carry out this Act.
SEC. 5. WAGE THEFT GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment of Wage Theft Prevention and Community
Partnership Grants.--The Secretary is authorized to award grants, on a
competitive basis, to eligible partners to--
(1) prevent wage and hour violations by informing workers
of their rights and the remedies available to them; and
(2) expand and improve cooperative efforts between agencies
charged with enforcing wage and hour requirements and employers
and their employees.
(b) Applications.--An eligible partner seeking a grant under this
section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time and
in such manner as the Secretary may require. An application shall
include, at a minimum, the following:
(1) A description of the plan for preventing wage and hour
violations.
(2) A description of the plan for outreach, including a
plan for assisting the Department of Labor in communicating
with workers.
(3) A description of the eligible partner's prior
experience in raising awareness about and enforcing wage and
hour laws and ensuring that worker rights are respected.
(4) Evidence of the community need for this type of work,
including prevalence of wage and hour violations in the
eligible partner's community or State.
(5) A description of any larger working group of
organizations, including Federal, State, or local government
agencies, and faith-based, labor, community, and business
organizations--
(A) of which the eligible partner is a member; or
(B) which the eligible partner is proposing to work
with in carrying out activities funded by such grant.
(c) Duration and Renewal of Grants.--
(1) Initial grant period.--A Wage Theft Prevention and
Community Partnerships Grant shall be awarded for an initial
grant period of 1 to 3 years.
(2) Renewals.--Such grant may be renewed for 2 additional
grant periods of the same duration as the initial grant period,
if--
(A) the Secretary determines that the funds made
available to the recipient were used in a manner
required under an approved application; and
(B) the recipient can demonstrate significant
progress in achieving the objectives of the initial
application.
(3) Additional grant.--A grant recipient may apply for an
additional grant under this section once the recipient's grant
renewals with respect to the initial grant have been exhausted.
(d) Ineligibility for Grants.--No grant may be awarded under this
section to--
(1) an entity that the Secretary determines infringes upon
upon the rights guaranteed by section 7 of the National Labor
Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 157); or
(2) an entity prohibited by section 427 of Public Law 111-
88 from receiving funds appropriated by that Act.
(e) Performance Evaluation.--Each program, project, or activity
funded under this section shall be subject to monitoring by the
Secretary which shall include systematic identification and collection
of data about activities, accomplishments, programs, and expenditures
throughout the life of the program, project, or activity.
(f) Reports to Congress.--For each year in which funding is
provided under this section, the Secretary shall submit an annual
report to the Congress on the activities carried out by grantees under
this section including, at a minimum, information on the following:
(1) The activities undertaken by each grantee and any other
entity that partnered with the grantee to prevent wage and hour
violations by informing workers of their rights and the
remedies available to them.
(2) The number of workers assisted by each grantee
disaggregated by State, age, income, gender, and race.
(3) A summary of progress by each grantee in implementing
wage theft prevention outreach plans approved by the Secretary.
(g) Revocation or Suspension of Funding.--If the Secretary
determines, as a result of the reviews required by subsections (e) and
(f), or otherwise, that a grant recipient under this section is not in
substantial compliance with the terms and requirements of an approved
grant application submitted under subsection (b), the Secretary may
revoke or suspend funding of that grant, in whole or in part.
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry
out this Act, including administrative costs associated with carrying
out this Act, such sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 2010
through 2014, to remain available until expended.
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